To My Dearest Cousin,

The statement that your cousins are your first friends is the truest I’ve ever heard. The memories that we’ve made over the years go down as some of the best in my book and there has never been a time that I’ve spent with you that I regret. From our first sleepovers, to exchanging our deepest secrets as adults, the time that I spend with you is special and sacred to me.

You’ve taught me so many things over the years. The first being how to ride a bike, and the most recent is that there is no force stronger than love. You are the first in the family that I want to go to when something exciting or even terrible happens, and I am always so taken away with how genuinely happy or concerned you are for me. You’ve been a constant anchor in my life. I would have never survived the family parties and drama without you by my side (I’m still mad at you for falling asleep at that wedding btw). No matter the struggles we’ve faced, it was always easier to push through them knowing that I had you.

My favorite memories are the embarrassing ones from our teen years. When we thought we were going to marry boy band members and I was convinced I was going to be a hair stylist. All those years we were scared to ask our parents to drive us to Hot Topic, or worried that they would catch us listening to My Chemical Romance. I smile remembering the silly things we used to pull off.

My imagination was always its strongest when I was with you. Between the hours of playing house and thinking of how we could create a world made entirely of candy, my imagination was running wild. I give credit to all of the stories we wrote, the plays we put on and our Fall Out Boy cover band, to the love of arts and creativity that I have today.

Now that we are both starting brand new and exciting chapters of our lives, we won’t be able to spend as much time, or see each other as often, but there are a few things that I need you to remember. First, I am so incredibly proud of you. You have been thrown so many curveballs, and you’ve hit them all out of the park with grace and strength. Second, this new chapter of your life is going to test your sanity, your patience, and your marriage. I want you to remember on days when you feel like nothing's going right and you could just give up, that I am only a phone call away and you always have someone rooting for you. You are strong, smart, and capable of anything.

Lastly, I want you to remember that anything is possible. If you are willing to put in the work and the prayers, anything you want out of life is within reach. Don’t let people tell you that you can’t. Always ask for help when you need it, and never be ashamed of asking questions, because that is the only way that we learn and grow successfully.